Homemade Burrito Bowl

I’m not sure if I mentioned it before, but my husband is in the Air Force and we’re stationed in Japan. I absolutely love it, but there are definitely a few things we miss from back home that we can’t get here.

Inevitably, conversation among friends always turns to food. Most everyone is crazy about Chipotle and their brand of Mexican food. We’re crazy about Mexican food in general and eat it at least once a week.

My favorite thing to order from Chipotle is their burrito bowl, which they popularized. It’s such an easy recipe to scale back for one person, or multiply for more.

This recipe is not a Chipotle copycat, but a template for you to create your own burrito rice bowls. It’s like a burrito, except it’s layered on a bed of rice with meat, beans, cheese and taco toppings.

Making them at home is just as easy and delicious. And did I mention how healthy they can be with wholesome ingredients? We’re definitely eating cleaner after the holiday binge!

There’s a lot of room for creativity here. You can do more or less than what I’ve suggested—there are no rules! I prefer to build my homemade burrito bowl based on the leftovers I have in the refrigerator.

We always have rice on hand, so I decided to jazz up the leftovers with lime juice and minced cilantro. Plain rice, brown rice or even quinoa works just as well.

This time I had leftover beef roast on hand which I shredded for protein. For Christmas I made roast pork and the leftovers went in the freezer for a quick topping at a later time. My husband’s favorite topping is grilled chicken taco meat, but you could totally go Meatless Monday with this too.

For the beans, pinto or black beans are popular choices. I like to spice mine up a little, but again, if you want to use plain beans the choice is up to you.

If you’re using salsa, cheese and other toppings, you probably won’t taste the difference. Love how quick and easy these are to throw together with such flavorful results!

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